Knowledge Attitude and Practices About Prevention of Neonatal Hypothermia Among Post Natal Mothers at Kiu-Teaching Hospital

ABSTRACT In Uganda, deliveries in the villages (32%) are conducted by traditional birth attendants with insufficient knowledge in neonatal thermal protection. Thus most mothers (70%) practice early bathing of the infants, and worst still poorly dry the infant after bathing. To assess knowledge, attitude and practices of postnatal mothers on prevention of neonatal hypothermia in Kampala International University Teaching Hospital, a cross-sectional study design quantitative in nature was used to recruit 60 respondents for the study. Out whom 60 questionnaires were returned completely filled giving a response rate of 100%. 57% of the respondents stated that neonatal hypothermia could best be prevented through bathing with warm water, 50% disagreed that neonatal hypothermia makes babies stronger later in life and 72% of the respondents agreed that skin to skin care was a good thermo protective practice. The researcher concluded that knowledge about prevention of neonatal hypothermia was not good as more than half of the respondents stated that neonatal hypothermia could best be prevented through bathing with warm water compared to kangaroo mother care despite good level of awareness about neonatal hypothermia, Attitudes towards prevention of neonatal hypothermia were equally not good as most of the respondents strongly agreed that early bathing of new born helps to modify shape of the head and more than half of the respondents strongly agreed that babies could be bathed immediately after birth to purify them from birthing process and practices about prevention of neonatal hypothermia were also not good as most of the respondents strongly agreed that adding substances like ash, rice water and salt in water for bathing neonates helps to prevent hypothermia although half of the respondents disagreed that un covered newborn baby could be placed on the floor.